Nomad frustration (rant alert)

[Rooter]

All, i am not a member of a golf club for the simple reason i cant play enough to warrant spending best part of a grand round here. For example, June i think i played twice, scheduled for 4 in July (which is a lot for me!!!) 20 rounds a year at best and that includes travelling and playing "corporate golf" and forum meets, so local games about 10?

Anyway, the wife this weeks says why don't you go and play gold with XYZ mate on Sunday Morning? (don't go into the she is having an affair! LOL) but the "rules" are, it doesn't take all day, which is more than fair enough as we have 3 young kids.

So, i start looking at where to play, within ten miles of my house, there are 6 decent courses. all of them members only before 2pm, i cant play after 2pm!! i want to play in the morning!!... i understand that fundamentally the paid for members rightly should have priority, however what would stop them having a very limited number of guest spots spread through the morning? I can guarantee (unless there is a comp on) all of the courses will not be packed so they have the space. I know i should just stump up the cash and stop moaning. In fact the best course local to me has an offer of "full" membership for £500(normally over £1k), however its limited to 20 rounds, after that you pay 1/2 price but you get to enter comps, get a handicap etc.. i know i should do this, but haven't got round to it, will wait till next year now if the offer is still on.

There we go, i feel better now after writing that and know what i need to do, but that doesn't help me for this Sunday!

 

[DCB]

It'll be interesting to see if you have the same outlook next year if you do manage to join a club

 

[GB72]

My course is busy at weekends with members and competitions as well as team matches etc. As such, access is limited to members and their guests and that seems fair to me. From a club point of view, I would also have thought that having full pay and play access at weekends could have an adverse impact on member numbers as there will be some in a similar position to you who have paid membership and others, rightly or wrongly, who would be unhappy if the course was open to all at busy times. As a member who can only really play at weekends, I would also not be too happy if I could not get a time slot because it had been booked out to pay and players.

A course local to me made this exact change, put in place a tee booking system and allowed anyone to play at weekends. The result was that a large number of members left because they could not always get a game on their own course or could not play at the times they wanted or usually played at.

It does not help that my club does not have any tee booking (except for competitions) and so there is no practical way to leave slots open for guests.

I have no problem with people paying to play the course, it is a vital income to the club, but I also think that the club needs some time that is reserved solely for the use of members.

 

[Rooter]

I have no problem with people paying to play the course, it is a vital income to the club, but I also think that the club needs some time that is reserved solely for the use of members.

Thats what i mean, literally maybe 1 tee off time per hour. I know i am asking the world, and as DCB said if i were a member and couldn't get on for an hour or 2 as loads of non members were out i would be annoyed. surely there is a middle ground though like i suggest? bookable 1 week in advance maximum, if its not taken by Friday, its an open slot for members..

Am i asking too much? probably!

 

[fundy]

I see the complete opposite of this, we are supposed to be members only weekend mornings but the guys who run the place try and slot greenfees in when they can if they think they can do so without upsetting the members too much, sadly they dont judge it that well sometimes, and having paid subs it can be quite annoying watching a 4 ball of green fees teeing it up when technically they shouldnt and then having to wait to get out yourselves and/or held up by them

 

[patricks148]

All, i am not a member of a golf club for the simple reason i cant play enough to warrant spending best part of a grand round here. For example, June i think i played twice, scheduled for 4 in July (which is a lot for me!!!) 20 rounds a year at best and that includes travelling and playing "corporate golf" and forum meets, so local games about 10?

Anyway, the wife this weeks says why don't you go and play gold with XYZ mate on Sunday Morning? (don't go into the she is having an affair! LOL) but the "rules" are, it doesn't take all day, which is more than fair enough as we have 3 young kids.

So, i start looking at where to play, within ten miles of my house, there are 6 decent courses. all of them members only before 2pm, i cant play after 2pm!! i want to play in the morning!!... i understand that fundamentally the paid for members rightly should have priority, however what would stop them having a very limited number of guest spots spread through the morning? I can guarantee (unless there is a comp on) all of the courses will not be packed so they have the space. I know i should just stump up the cash and stop moaning. In fact the best course local to me has an offer of "full" membership for £500(normally over £1k), however its limited to 20 rounds, after that you pay 1/2 price but you get to enter comps, get a handicap etc.. i know i should do this, but haven't got round to it, will wait till next year now if the offer is still on.

There we go, i feel better now after writing that and know what i need to do, but that doesn't help me for this Sunday!

so let me get this straight, you don't want to spend the money on joining a club, but you expect people who are members of clubs and are keeping clubs alive with there membership fee's to keep times aside for you on a Sunday morning in the summer when the courses are prob at there busiest for members???????????

the mind boggles

 

[BTatHome]

I've definitely seen visitors appearing at our place early on Sunday mornings.

 

[GB72]

Thats what i mean, literally maybe 1 tee off time per hour. I know i am asking the world, and as DCB said if i were a member and couldn't get on for an hour or 2 as loads of non members were out i would be annoyed. surely there is a middle ground though like i suggest? bookable 1 week in advance maximum, if its not taken by Friday, its an open slot for members..

Am i asking too much? probably!

From my, entirely selfish, point of view, I think that you are asking too much. As a member of a club I do not think that it is too much to ask to have the busiest couple of days exclusively for the use of the membership. There has to be some benefits to being a fully paid up member. From my point of view, I have to pay a full 7 day membership even though I can only play on 2 of those days. If the courses local to me had slots to pay and play at the weekend then I may use them and forget the membership and I would not be the only one. I appreciate what you say about the course not being full etc but that is when you get the real benefit of being a member, a course that you can play on with no queues or distractions. It rarely happens but it is heaven when it does. There are plus and minus points to being a nomadic golfer and one of the down sides is that you have to accept that members courses are not always available to play when you want, especially at weekends.

 

[Rooter]

so let me get this straight, you don't want to spend the money on joining a club, but you expect people who are members of clubs and are keeping clubs alive with there membership fee's to keep times aside for you on a Sunday morning in the summer when the courses are prob at there busiest for members???????????

the mind boggles

not quite, i was simply a. venting my frustration which i fully understand is my fault and not the clubs. and b. would it make commercial sense to have 1 non members tee time slot per hour (or even 2 hours) on non competition weekends? would this not give visitors the real feeling of the club and potentially make them want to join? Surely keeping clubs alive is having existing members renew and also enticing new members?

I understand that it sounds like i want my cake, with cherries on the top fed to me by swedish virgins, however thats not quite right.. its not far off though.. i will take the virgins, dont like cherries.

And well put Greg, i fully understand it all! so no need for mind boggling, was just throwing a new idea out there!!

 

[Rooter]

I've definitely seen visitors appearing at our place early on Sunday mornings.

oooh you might see 2 more on Sunday! are you playing at all Sunday? fancy joining us we play? Just looking online and you have tee times from 6am to about 9am and then from 11am onwards! perfect a club that shares my idea!

On a side, do you ever get frustrated by the qty of visitors on weekends??

 

[Hacker Khan]

As a non member I can understand what Rooter says. I managed to find one course around me last Sunday to play on, but midday was the earliest I could get on.

I suppose it depends on if the tee times are full with members on Sat and Sunday mornings. If so then fair enough, obviously the members have the priority. But if you have courses that have empty tee times on Sat and Sunday that are being kept free for members that don't turn up, then I can't help think clubs are missing out on additional revenue which I imagine most would like nowadays.

I always remember playing at Hollinwell, one of the top 100 courses in the country, through knowing a green keeper there. We played on a glorious Sunday afternoon in June, and it is no exaggeration to say we saw 3 other people the whole round. It was glorious for us, millionaires golf on a superb track. But can't help thinking they were missing generating some revenue. Perhaps they feel they don't need it, who knows.

 

[BTatHome]

oooh you might see 2 more on Sunday! are you playing at all Sunday? fancy joining us we play? Just looking online and you have tee times from 6am to about 9am and then from 11am onwards! perfect a club that shares my idea!

On a side, do you ever get frustrated by the qty of visitors on weekends??

Sunday has an invitational day, so not really a full comp. I'm playing in that with an old work colleague, so can't join you.

If it was a full comp then would have booked the whole of the morning (see the week after).

For me the only time it bothers me is when they dont include a buffer before the comp, and so you can first out in the comp expecting a pretty clear course only to find a couple of visitors out in front.

If your playing then I would try and get out as early as possible as I'm sure the rest of the times will be booked by members and then you'll be stuck in the middle of them .... some of them aren't quite so friendly . Enjoy as the course is in absolutely awesome condition at the moment.

 

[Val]

Ever considered this option.

Join a club thats is miles away from you (and I do mean miles, over 100) as a country member and you should pick a deal up around £200, you could choose to travel with the Mrs and kids once a month to said course for you to play 1 monthly medal to justify your fee or even take the 3 hour or so round trip on your own if she doesn't fancy it.

Now you have an active handicap and should pick up numerious opens on the weekends around where you live. Add all this together and chances are you are around what a yearly fee is but you have qualifying comps to play and never short of a weekend knock.

Alternatively, join a local club and be done with it BUT right now you cannot moan about a course being member only over weekends, thats when members look to play

 

[Beezerk]

so let me get this straight, you don't want to spend the money on joining a club, but you expect people who are members of clubs and are keeping clubs alive with there membership fee's to keep times aside for you on a Sunday morning in the summer when the courses are prob at there busiest for members???????????

the mind boggles

I think the point of his argument is the clubs should possibly be more open to filling in early tee time gaps on a weekend, it's win win for them both surely? That is of course on the proviso that there are some empty slots.
I also see the other side of the argument where I'd be miffed if I was waiting in line for some visitors to tee off but I'm sure it could be done with enough decent planning.

Look at Wimbledon yesterday, loads of empty seats but not a ticket to be had for love nor money.

 

[cookelad]

My old place would sneak in a "visiting fourball" right before our swindle on Saturdays and Sundays, this would more often than not lead to 4 1/2-5 hour rounds and the pro would take the abuse for allowing visitors on at 8.52 with a smile but it wasn't a popular tactic!

 

[Rooter]

Ever considered this option.

Join a club thats is miles away from you (and I do mean miles, over 100) as a country member and you should pick a deal up around £200, you could choose to travel with the Mrs and kids once a month to said course for you to play 1 monthly medal to justify your fee or even take the 3 hour or so round trip on your own if she doesn't fancy it.

Now you have an active handicap and should pick up numerious opens on the weekends around where you live. Add all this together and chances are you are around what a yearly fee is but you have qualifying comps to play and never short of a weekend knock.

Alternatively, join a local club and be done with it BUT right now you cannot moan about a course being member only over weekends, thats when members look to play

Good idea, dont think the mrs would buy it. however, i have just remembered one course near me offers a handicap membership!! see details here, would this be enough for then to find some opens? so in short, you pay for all green fees, but are a "member"

Handicap Membership
Handicap Membership costs £35 per annum. Green Fees = Standard Rate This membership entitles the holder to the following benefits:
- Discount on tuition
- Discount on selected merchandise
- Extended pre-booking period (14 days)
- Administration of handicaps
- Arrangement of competitions
- A XYZ CLUB Loyalty Card A charge of £14.75 for men and £15.25 for ladies must be added to the above figure to cover Golf Union affiliation fees.

 

[patricks148]

I think the point of his argument is the clubs should possibly be more open to filling in early tee time gaps on a weekend, it's win win for them both surely? That is of course on the proviso that there are some empty slots.
I also see the other side of the argument where I'd be miffed if I was waiting in line for some visitors to tee off but I'm sure it could be done with enough decent planning.

Look at Wimbledon yesterday, loads of empty seats but not a ticket to be had for love nor money.

I'm not sure there would be many Members club that have empty slots on Sat or Sunday mornings, the main times for members to play.

afternoons fine i would imag, thats one of the few benifits of being a member to be able to play when you want at the weekends.

Maybe the OP should look at a pay and play course, no memebers to accom

 

[Beezerk]

I'm not sure there would be many Members club that have empty slots on Sat or Sunday mornings, the main times for members to play.

True mate, I was just offering some kind of middle ground for the argument.

 

[mikee247]

Yes sometimes - we have members slots up to 11am on Saturdays and a little earlier on Sundays I think....but that can be flexed if there's is not many booked out to play as we have a tee booking system. We also run a members points system which might suit you better than full membership. In brief you basically buy points which allows you to certain amount of rounds of golf and you to have all the benefits of a member incl handicaps and play in some but not all comps ( id have to confirm on exactly what). Of course the more you play at the key times the more points you buy. Its a lot cheaper than a full membership but better value than green fees apparently... but suits guys who dont have time to play every week. I know a few chaps who do it and it works for them. Oh and we are the best course by far in Newbury and surrounding area!!!

 

[Rooter]

Maybe the OP should look at a pay and play course, no memebers to accom

I have and no course near me is P&P all of them are members clubs. however, BTatHomes course is a little further away and offers the best of both worlds for me, so potentially play there this weekend, its a great track, played there with therod last year,

I wasnt suggesting turning a saturday/sunday morning at your club a free for all, merely suggesting opening up say 4 tee time for the entire morning to non members. I understand the fundamental point of a members club is to offer the members the best benefits! was just trying to get a few scraps off the dining table so to speak...